A Look at Disney vs. The Forces of Evil: Star Butterfly

Hello & welcome back to A Look at Disney and this year, we are kicking off 2016 by looking at what is easily one of my favorite animated series of all time.  Yes, it's only aired one season but it's freshman season really won me over last year, so much so that I can safely say that to me, this is one of the greatest animated Disney series of all time, perhaps one of the greatest series of all time. So welcome to A Look at Disney vs. The Forces of Evil.  What will this week entail,  I'll start off by looking at Star herself, three episode reviews including the pilot, one of the most important episodes of the first season, the season finale but before we get to the finale, I'll be doing a Top 6 Episodes of Season 1.  And yes,  I'll be doing a Music Fridays, however it'll only be three songs. With that out of the way, let's begin by looking the princess from another dimension. This'll be similar to my Power of The Princesses/Heroes of Disney articles in which I'll take a look at Voice Actress, First Appearance, Personality, Partner, Favorite Moment, and finally, Is Star A Good Character?



Voice Actress


Eden Sher

I'll be honest and say that before this show, I knew next to nothing about Eden Sher.  Sure, I knew about her on The Middle but this is the first time that I've watched anything starring her and as Star Butterfly, she is quite a joy to watch as she gets the personality down pat quite well. She can do Star's over-the-top and make that so endearing while also doing well with the quieter moments that Star has as well.




First Appearance


Star makes her first appearance in the pilot episode, Star Comes To Earth and when I first saw her, I wasn't sure what to make of her as she seemed rather eccentric and I thought that she was going to be a character that was going to get on my nerves throughout the show but thankfully, I was proven wrong.

The pilot shows both her silly and lovable side and also how much, she can hold her own in fights as she loves kicking monster butt.  I'll go into more detail about why Star comes to Earth in the review but the biggest reason is because she inherited the Royal Wand and before using it, she was a bit reckless on her home planet of Mewni.

It was when I saw stuff like this and most importantly, this scene, I knew that I had a new favorite character.








Personality



Star's personality is the biggest reason that I love her character so much. She has one of the most endearing personalities on any TV show ever.  She is a bit bubbly, loves having fun and tends to have an optimistic outlook on life.  Though as the Star Vs. The Forces of Evil mentions, she can go too far with this and isn't always a good thing.

Owing to her rather sheltered upbringing, Star's optimism and enthusiasm can border on recklessness, to the point of endangering people around her with her madcap antics.

And again, Star being from another dimension also means that she doesn't have a firm grasp on Earth customs and that puts her and both her Earth best friend, Marco in danger.  Star simply put is adorable but as seen in the season finale, don't make her angry because you won't like what's coming.  If you hurt Star's friends or family, you'll pay.



Partner


Marco Diaz

In the first episode,  Marco is annoyed by Star's antics and I was much like Marco until that scene.  But as the show goes on, we see how much Star cherishes her friendship with Marco is vice versa as Marco always joins Star on her adventures and the main villain of the season got to Star by kidnapping Marco.  In the partnership between the two, Marco is the more responsible and grounded member that has to reign Star in from time to time.  Though as seen in the episode, Blood Moon Ball, his protection of Star can sometimes go a line too far because as Star says at the end of that episode.

You don't trust me to do things by myself. I'm 14. I can handle a demon. [leans on the balcony] I know you're trying to look out for me, but you have to let me figure things out on my own. I don't need a hero. I need a friend.

And Marco does take this lesson to heart over time as he comes to trust Star on her own.



Favorite Moment


Uh. tough but I'm gonna narrow it down to two. The above mentioned ending line from Blood Moon Ball as that is a rather mature moment from Star.

Or if I want a silly moment, I can go with something from the episode that makes me laugh the most. The Banagic Incident.

This episode is nothing but a long chase through the city as we follow Star on her crazy adventures to The Banagic Wand. A silly as seen on TV item but it is the execution and what she goes through to get it. Every time, I watch this episode I laugh as they get so many great jokes from Star  entering a pirate themed restaurant and thinking the place had been taken hostage by actual pirates.

Is Star A Good Character?

Overall, I'd say that Star is a good character.  On the surface, she may appear aloof and to be a silly character that doesn't have to much depth to her but if you are willing to watch the show and see her more tender moments, you discover that Star is a bright young girl that will make a good princess, she just has some quirks to her but those quirks are what make so lovable.

Join me next time as I look at the pilot episode of Star vs. The Forces of Evil as we see what happens when...

Star Comes To Earth